On the evening of November 6, 2010, fire broke out in the back, second floor bedroom, of this late 1800’s apartment building in Chicago’s old Pilsen neighborhood.  In the days after the fire, family members speculated that the cause was a space heater, although a determined cause was never reported.

The result was the tragic death of a father and his young son.  The 3-year old was found in the same room as the fire’s origin.  The father had run back inside the burning apartment in an attempt to rescue his children and was successful in wrapping his one-year old daughter in a blanket before he succumbed to the smoke.  She was found lying next to him and the fact that her head was wrapped in the blanket probably saved her life.

I arrived to see her being rushed to the ambulance but was unaware of what else had happened.  The father would die several weeks later.  The picture sequence seems out of order but the less smokey images are actually from when I first arrived.  The fire eventually made it’s way into the attic and it was brought under control using an exterior attack from Tower Ladder 5, who was running a spare rig that day.

Eric Haak photo

Eric Haak photo

Eric Haak photo

Eric Haak photo

Eric Haak photo

Eric Haak photo